【大约在十年前，著名的华人生物学家蒲慕明先生曾经有一封非常著名的email在网上广为流传，这封email是蒲先生写给自己实验室所有博士生和博士后的。这封email写的语重心长，从中可以看出蒲先生的良苦用心。
中国科学院神经科学研究所蒲慕明所长,对美国实验室的人大发雷霆。蒲慕明先生是伯克莱大学教授，中国科学院神经科学研究所所长。 2001年，蒲教授对美国实验室的人大发雷霆，你们太懒了，每年不能超过20天休假。每周必须工作至少六天。一天不来实验室必须得到我的同意。每周60小时动手做实验、谈天、上网、看文献的时间不算。写论文时再看文献。你们谁不干，开路。每周得向我汇报。到今年6月每人得有两篇J Neuroscience以上的论文。谁做不到，我要你8月开路。 2007年，蒲慕明要求神经所全体学生端正学习态度。以下是蒲慕明教授写给他实验室学生的信】
Lab members:
Over the past several months, it has become clear to me that if there is no drastic change in the lab, Poo lab will soon cease to be a productive, first-rate lab that you chose to join in the first place. Lab progress reports over the past six months have clearly shown the lack of progress in most projects.one year ago, when we first moved to Berkeley, I expressed clearly to everyone my expectation from eachone in the lab.
The most important thing is what I consider to be sufficient amount of time and effort in the lab work. I mentioned that about 60 hr working time per week is what I consider the minimal time an average successful young scientist in these days has to put into the lab work. There may be a few rare lucky fellows like Florian, who had two Nature papers in his sleeve already, can enjoy life for a while and still get a job offer from Harvard. noone else in the lab has Florian's luxury to play around.Thus I am imposing strict rules in the lab from now on:
1. Everyone works at least 50 hr a week in the lab （e.g., 8+ hr a day, six days a week）. This is by far lower than what I am doing every day and throughout most of my career. You may be smarter or do not want to be ssuccessful, but I am not asking you to match my time in the lab.
2. By working, I mean real bench work. This does not include surfing on the computer and sending and receiving e-mails for non-scientific matters unrelated to your work （you can do this after work in the lab or at home, and excessive chatting on nonscientific matters. No long lunch break except special occasions. I suggest that everyone puts in at least 6 hr concentrated bench work and 2+ hr reading and other research-related activity each day. Reading papers and books should be done mostly after work. More time can be spent on reading, literature search and writing during working hours when you are ready for writing a paper.
3. I must be inxxxxed in person by e-mail （even in my absence from the lab）when you are absent from the lab for a whole day or more. Inxxxx me early your vacation plan. Taking more than 20 working days out ofone year is the maximum to me. In fact, none of you are reporting any vacation and sick leave on your time sheet （against the university rule, although I have been signing the sheets））, but you know roughly how many days you were not here. On the whole, I understand and accept the fact that you may not fulfill the above requirements all the time, due to health reasons, occasional personal business. But if you do not like to follow the rules because it is simply a matter of choice of life style, I respect your choice but suggest you start making plans immediately and leave the lab by the end of January 31. I will do my best to help you to locate a lab to transfer or to find a job. If you do accept the conditions I describe above, I am happy to continue to provide my best support to your work, hopefully more than I have done in the past. I will review the progress of everyone in the lab by the end of June of 2002. I expect everyone to have made sufficient progress in the research so that a good paper is in sight （at least to the level of J.Neuroscience. If you cannot meet this goal at that time, I will have to ask you to prepare to leave my lab by the end of August. Mu-ming As a scientist, you must dedicate everything to this business 作为一个科学家，你必须把一切都献身给科研事业.
－ Working time: 8-hour is unpractical. There is NO way for a scientist or a Ph.D student to workonly 8 hours a day! 每天仅仅工作8个小时是不行的。对于一个博士或者科学家，每天仅仅工作8个小时根本根本就是死路一条！（“NO way”）
－ Go to your mother’s house for afternoon naps and never come back! 如果有人敢午休，那就马上卷铺盖走人，永远不要再回实验室！
－ Vacation: 5 weeks per year (Chinese New Year, the May Day and the National Day breaks are included) 包括春节、五一、国庆，每年全部假期一共5个星期。
－ Start your morning work not later than 8:30 am and afternoon work no later than 1 pm 上午必须早于8：30上班，下午早于1点上班。（注意，没有规定几点下班。）
－ Surf over the Internet for non-scientific purposes should be less than 30 min a day 每天用于看网页以及其他与科研无关事情的时间不得多余30分钟。
－ Reading newspapers should be limited less than 30 min a day 每天看报纸的时间不得多余30分钟
－ Novels or other non-scientific journals/magazines are not permitted in the lab and office 小说和非科研性杂志不准带入实验室
－ If you are absent from the lab more thanone hour, get permission first. 如果离开实验室超过1个小时，必须事先请假并得到允许。
－ Everyone has personal business, but the lab business always has priority unless in emergency 除非紧急的事情，否则实验室的事情永远大于私事。
－ In this business, an “average” student who works seven days a week is definitely more productive than a “genius” who works five days a week 在这行里，每周只工作5天，即使是天才，也比要低于比一个工作7天的资质平平的人还要差。
－ If you are able to make any major progresses by working 8 hours a day and 5 days a week, every fortunate in this world must be on your side! 如果你即使每天工作8个小时并且每周只工作5天，居然也能成功哪怕只有一次（any）。那除非你是上帝（主宰了世界上一切的人）！
Pu